Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.

Other

Masahiro Irie

Japan Science and Technology Corporation

The Pilot Ink Co., Ltd.

Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Corporation

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Nippondenso Co., Ltd.

Asahi Glass Company, Limited

Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation

Kyushu University

Kobe Natural Products & Chemicals Co., Ltd.

Kobe Natural Products

Fumio Tatezono

Tsuyoshi Tsujioka

Toshio Harada

Koutaro Matsuura

Yutaka Shibahashi

Michiyuki Yasuda

Meguru Ohara

Naoto Kijima

Koji Kondo

Kazuo Van

Yuriko Kaida

Shuichi Maeda

Yuki Tanaka

Minoru Kume

Futoshi Ishikawa

Toyoichi Tanaka

Akira Mamada

Setsuko Irie

Shinichirou Nakamura

Shizuka Takami

Dawan Kungwatchakun

Disclosed is light-driven actuator element characterized in that, inter alia, it can be reduced to micrometer size, is rapidly responsive, and reversibly changes to enable repeated use. The light-driven actuator element includes a crystal of diarylethene compound which changes shape upon photoisomerization (e.g., the compound of Structural Formula (I) below, where Rrepresents a hydrogen atom or methyl group and Rrepresents a methyl group). The element can be a rod-shaped or plate-like microcrystal having a size on the order of micrometer. The element bends (or contracts) on irradiation with ultraviolet light and expands to return to the original size on irradiation with visible light. 

Light-activated actuator element

A toy comprises a toy element comprising a photochromic layer which contains a photochromic compound having a photo memory function (color-memorizing photochromic property), maintains a coloring state by developing a color through the irradiation of ultraviolet rays or sunlight containing ultraviolet rays and changes into decolorizing state through its decolorization by the irradiation of visible light, and a color-changing means which contains at least one of an ultraviolet ray absorbent and a light-shading pigment capable of shading at least ultraviolet rays, changes the photochromic compound of the coloring state into decolorizing state by cutting off ultraviolet rays of sunlight and thereby effecting irradiation of visible light, and maintains the changed state, wherein a function to memorize and maintain coloring and decolorizing states alternately is expressed by arranging the color-changing means under such a condition that it is contacted or non-contacted with the photochromic layer.

Method for alternately expressing color-memorizing photochromic function in toy element, and an alternately color-memorizing photochromic toy

A color-memorizing photochromic writing instrument, which comprises a writing tip portion connected to a light-shielding tubular member or refill; and a color-memorizing photochromic ink, wherein the ink is prepared by dissolving, dispersing or suspending a diarylethene photochromic compound in a vehicle containing at least a solvent and a binder, wherein the diarylethene photochromic compound is in a coloring state, and a color-memorizing photochromic writing instrument set comprising the writing instrument and a color-changing means.

Color-memorizing photochromic writing instrument, color-memorizing photochromic writing instrument set using the same and method for alternately expressing color-memorizing photochromic function of writing image

To detect an irradiated radiation efficiently, so that the dose can be measured with high sensitivity. A photochromic material comprising an illuminant(s) which emits a light when irradiated with a radiation and a diarylethene photochromic compound(s) having a specific structure, and a color dose meter employing it.

Photochromic material and color dose meter using the same

A photochromic material having a ring opening quantum yield of 10or lower which does not fade under ambient light is provided. The material comprises a compound belonging to the diheteroarylethene class. The compound has alkoxy group and aryl group on the heteroaryl group.

Photochromic material

Optical recording material which is capable of recording and reading an information signal by utilizing a change in the double refraction caused by a change in the molecular orientation of a side-chain type polymer liquid crystal which has an electrocyclic-reaction-type photochromic compound (or a residue thereof), or a side-chain polymer liquid crystal having in a polymer chain thereof a monomeric unit to which the photochromic compound is bonded.

Optical recording material

A near-field optical recording medium comprises a recording layer capable of writing, reading and erasing information using an evanescent light, the evanescent light having a beam spot size smaller than the wavelength of a source light, wherein the recording layer is a stable amorphous layer mainly comprising a photochromic compound having a glass transition point of 55&#xb0; C. or higher and a molecular weight of 3000 or less.

Near-field optical recording medium and near-field optical recording method

A photo-induced phase transition organic material is composed of a diheteroarylethene-based compound within which the photo-chromic reaction occurs in the crystalline state. The diheteroarylethene-based compound of the present invention reversibly changes in color with light irradiation and also changes in phase from the open-ring form in the crystalline state to the closed-ring form in the crystalline state, or from the closed-ring form in the crystalline state to the open-ring form in the crystalline state via the liquid state, and can be applicable to optical recording media, display panels, sensors, optical switch devices and the like, by taking advantages of its variations in color with light irradiation and also its changes in physical property, such as the refractive index and the permeability, with its changes in phase.

Photo-induced phase transition organic material

A photon mode reaction is caused in an optical recording medium by irradiating the optical recording medium susceptible to the photon mode reaction with light emitted from a light emitting device when driven by a pulsed current.

Method for optically controlling an optical device and an optical

An optical material contains a photochromic compound which is expressed in the following general formula (I): ##STR1## where A represents an oxygen atom, a nitrogen atom, or a substituted nitrogen atom, B represents a thiophene ring, benzothiophene ring, pyrrole ring or indole ring, R.sub.1 represents a methyl group, an alkoxy group or a perfluoroalkyl group, R.sub.2 to R.sub.7 represent a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, a hydroxy group, an alkyl group and the like respectively. This photochromic compound may be bonded with a polymer as a side chain in the position of A.

Optical material

An optical memory medium having a transparent substrate, a recording layer and a reflective layer, the recording layer and the reflective layer being formed in this order on the transparent substrate. The recording layer is a diarylethene derivative dispersed in a non-polar polymeric binder. The optical memory medium with such a recording layer fully utilizes advantageous properties of the diarylethene derivative, such as good thermal stability of recorded state, excellent durability against repeated color changes between colored and colorless states, and photosensitive property to semiconductor laser light with a wavelength of 780 nm. The optical memory medium enables high-density recording and non-destructive readout.

Optical memory medium

An optical recording medium is provided with a masking layer on a side of a recording layer for receiving a reproducing beam. The masking layer is prepared from that containing photochromic dye molecules having absorption at the wavelength of the reproducing beam and causing a photon mode reaction by absorbing the reproducing beam to be reduced in absorption.

Methods of recording and reproducing information using an optical

Disclosed herein is an optical recording material containing a photochromic compound which is expressed in the following general formula (I): ##STR1## where A represents an oxygen atom or a substituted or unsubstituted nitrogen atom, R.sub.1 represents an alkoxy group, R.sub.2 to R.sub.5 represent substituents such as a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, a hydroxy group, a substituted or unsubstituted alkyl group and the like respectively, and B represents a substituted or unsubstituted thiophene ring, benzothiophene ring, pyrrole ring or indole ring.

Optical recording material and optical recording medium employing the

The present invention relates to a solution for catalytic treatment, which is effective for applying a catalyst-metal onto the surface of a substrate, which can provide a film having excellent properties such as adhesion, precision and selectivity through electroless plating or the like, and which does not cause a premature and undesirable decomposition in a bath. The solution for catalytic treatment comprises a catalyst-metal in the form of ions, which permits the deposition of the metal serving as a catalyst on a substrate by applying the solution onto the surface of the substrate and then irradiating the substrate with light rays. The present invention also relates to a method of applying a catalyst onto a substrate and a method of forming an electrical conductor in which such a solution for catalytic treatment is employed.

Solution for catalytic treatment, method of applying catalyst to

A technique for improving a number of reproducible times in reproduction of information from an optical recording medium having a recording layer which reacts in a photon mode. The power of a reproducing beam is set in proximity to P.sub.rep (W) appearing in the following expression (I) or within a range of P.sub.rep (W) appearing in the following expression (II): ##EQU1## In order to improve an S-N ratio, squeezed light having suppressed photon number fluctuation is employed as a reproducing beam at need. If improvement of the number of reproducible times is in preference to improvement of the S-N ratio, such squeezed light having suppressed photon number fluctuation is employed as a reproducing beam with power which is set within a range of P.sub.rep (W) appearing in the following expression (III): ##EQU2##

Growing community of inventors

Fukuoka, Japan

Masahiro Irie